Visitor Information
It’s Field Day time again at Swan Hill as farmers and residents from across north west Victoria and southern New South Wales travel to the annual Swan Hill-Murray Downs Field Days.
Celebrating 20 years, the 2008 Field Days will be held at the Murray Downs Complex on Tuesday 6 and Wednesday 7 May and will showcase millions of dollars worth of farm machinery and equipment, products, services, and general interest items.
The Field Days will feature a range of outdoor sites, as well as a General Interest, Business Support, and Craft Marquee.
Displays will include new releases of farm machinery and equipment, including tractors of varying sizes, harvesting equipment, ploughs and farm implements, forklifts, hay rakes, irrigation pumps and supplies, water trading, and water tanks.
This includes the Grizzly FieldMaster gang disc plough, a heavy cultivation machine that folds both short and narrow in transportation mode, simplifying movement between paddocks and through gateways.
Livestock and livestock handling equipment, spray systems, grain and
fertiliser storage solutions, the latest model trucks, cars and motor bikes,
tyres, engines, groundcare equipment, mowers, fuels, lubricants, farm safety
equipment, tools and hardware will also be on show.
There will be exhibits promoting biological farming systems, revegetation and nursery products, water saving devices, the Bunny Blaster Rabbit Control Service, waste and recycling services, and a noxious weed display.
In addition to the farming displays, there will be a range of general interest sites encompassing banking and financial services, insurance, real estate, telephone and internet solutions, solar hot water systems, household items, plants, clothing, education and employment, waste management information, and government services including the Mobile Drought Assistance Bus.
There will also be a range of outdoor recreational products including camper trailers and camping gear, canoes and kayaks, outdoor furniture, and barbecues.
With over 5000 items to be on display there is something for everyone at this year’s Field Days, so make sure you allow plenty of time to see them all.
The 2008 Swan Hill-Murray Downs Field Days are proudly supported by Swan Hill Rural City Council and are open to the public between 9 am and 5 pm on Tuesday 6 May and between 9 am and 4 pm on Wednesday 7 May, with admission costing $6.00 for adults and $3.00 for aged pensioners. Children under 16 and students are admitted free of charge.
There are three large marquees at the Swan Hill-Murray Downs Field Days this
year, offering a diverse range of products and services to the visiting public
from more than 40 exhibitors.
The General Interest Marquee will feature displays on education opportunities from both Swan Hill College and Ballarat and Clarendon College, a display by Alcheringa Hostel (Swan Hill Village) about a planned new retirement facility for Swan Hill, peat based horticultural products including soil conditioners, potting mixes and fertilisers from Biogreen Products, and Dr Tens’ pain relief without drugs, acupuncture without needles, power massage, nerve and muscle stimulation, and reflexology
There will be beautiful redgum furniture from Kerang Redgum Works, Australian made timber homewares and educational wooden toys and puzzles from Keidra Woodworks, BBQ liners, portable massage units, and Kakadu juice from Megamax, and a Leather Balsam conditioner and waterproofer & wardrobe spacesavers from Cross Bars Renapur.
Chinese Meridian Therapy will offer herbal products, reflexology and cupping therapy, while Family Heritage Australia will have available Surname History’s and Heraldry Products. And Suregro will have land Management, soil erosion control products, revegetation products and consultancy services.
In the Business Support & Climate Change Marquee you will find all your employment and training needs covered - Murray Mallee Training Co Ltd’s AUSNAC stand will promote their Australian Apprenticeship Centre supporting new apprentices and employers with a range of financial and other incentives to assist apprentices completing qualifications, Employment Works will have information and advice available about their wide range of employment services, and MADEC’s display will be a one-stop-Shop for all your employment, harvest labour, and education and training needs.
Other exhibitors include Aboriginal Affairs Victoria who will help visitors better understand the Aboriginal Heritage Act 2006, and provide information about the protection and management, with the involvement of Aboriginal people, of Victoria’s rich and diverse Aboriginal cultural heritage, and local organisation Murray Industries.
Rutherford Street Insurance Services will be there to help with all your general insurance needs for the home, motor vehicle, commercial and farm businesses, boat, caravan, crop and workcover, while VicSuper will promote their superannuation fund with benefit plans to suit all stages of a person’s working life and in retirement.
A major feature of the Business Support & Climate Change Marquee is a focus on Climate Change which will be coordinated by the Birchip Cropping Group. For more information about this, click here.
And with Mother’s Day to be held the following Sunday, no trip to the Field Days will be complete without a visit to the Craft Marquee, an ideal place to find that special gift for mum with a range of handmade and unique products on display and for sale.
This includes pure wool quilts and manchester products, ceramic water purifiers, a great range of Handmade Vintage buttons for a wide range of hobbies including patchwork, sewing and gardening, as well as jewellery products, a full range of therapeutic equipment, Helen’s hand-puppets and unique timber puppet theatres, lavender body care products and crafts, lemon myrtle moisturisers, shampoo, conditioners, and soaps, and little Boombalada baby products.
There will also be Enjo’s environmentally friendly fibre and water based cleaning products, hand made fudge, soy candles, and all natural vegetable oil from the Fudge Factory, prints of birds and landscapes mounted in matts ready to be framed from N & E Gardner, and the latest women’s fashion clothing from Postie Fashions
In Home Therapy will have a range of products for sale including a portable massager, Shiatze Massage Mat, Refloxology Machines, heat Pads and Pillow, while Pam’s Mobile Coolroom will feature Riverland Smallgoods. Beerenberg Products, and Dimboola Honey.
As in past years, there will also be a demonstration area hosted by the CWA so you can find out more about the many different types of crafts available and maybe take up a new hobby.
Another highlight of the Field Day swill be Farm Art Parades at 11 am and 2 pm on Tuesday, and at 11 am on Wednesday. For more information about the Farm Art feature, click here.
It’s our Birthday! The Swan Hill-Murray Downs Field Days are celebrating 20 years of showcasing the latest in farm machinery, equipment, products and services during 2008, so join us and show your support for what has become a major event on the region’s annual calendar.
The event has come a long way since it began at the Ken Harrison Sporting Complex back in 1988 as a one-day event with a handful of exhibitors. This year the Field Days will take place over two days and will have more than 5000 products on display catering for all types of farming enterprises, as well as the wider community.
There will be thousands of dollars in prizes given away as part of our site promotion competition, as well as promotional giveaways from the many exhibitors taking part in the Field Days.
And of course there will be cake…. that’s right, a special 20th anniversary cake will be cut and eaten after the presentation of the Exhibitor Awards on Wednesday in front of the Site Office around noon.
Food, Glorious Food As you walk around the Field Days site, you will be enticed by the delicious smells coming from the Catering area, and with many different caterers, you are sure to find something to suit your tastebuds.
There’s the Maldon Yabbie Farm with a range of yabby products including burgers, pies, platters, salads and bisque, Don Antonio’s Mobile Pizza Van offering pizza by the slice, and Pyrenees Baked Potatoes with a number of different baked potato options available for sale.
A new addition to the catering area is Tan’s Tucker Box offering a range of food items including hot dogs, pies, pasties, chips, hot jam donuts, lasagne, dim sims, potato cakes, and chicken snitzel sandwiches.
For those who love the taste and smell of a barbecue, the Murray Downs Fire Brigade will be at the Field Days once again, while in the Craft Marquee the CWA will have delicious soups and sandwiches for sale, and in the centre of the site you will find Kofike National Catering with a range of gourmet foods, including vegetarian, for sale.
To finish off, you can enjoy a delicious tea, coffee or hot chocolate from the Coffee A La Cart, or indulge in an ice-cream from Flanagan’s Ice-Creamery.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |